Color changing window with closed liquid circulation system



Feb. 13, 1968 H. T. DEAN 3,368,862

COLOR CHANGING 'NlNDO'vl' WITH CLOSED LIQUID CIRCULATION SYSTEM Filed Sept. 24, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 0 M INVENTOR EAN HOLMETD y fl lromw H. T. DEAN Feb. 13, 1968 COLOR CHANGING WINDOW WITH CLOSED LIQUID CIRCULATION SYSTEM 2 Sheets-Sheet :2

Filed Sept.

. INVENTOR H 0 L L/ E T DEA/v United States Patent Office 3,368,862 Patented Feb. 13, 1968 3,368,862 COLOR CHANGING WINDOW WITH CLOSED LIQUID CIRCULATION SYSTEM Hollie Thomas Dean, Williamsport, Md., assignor to Swift & Company, Chicago, 11]., a corporation of lilinois Filed Sept. 24, 1965, Ser. No. 490,010 4 Claims. (Cl. 350312) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A color changing window with a closed liquid and air circulating system having a liquid receptacle, a sealed transparent window chamber and an expansible chamber. A vacuum pump and check valve are interposed in the system to pump air from window chamber to the expansible chamber, drawing the liquid from the receptacle to the window chamber. A bypass conduit and manually operable valve are connected into the system on both sides of the pump and check valve for reintroducing the air from the expansible chamber to the window chamber allowing the liquid to flow from the window chamber to the receptacle.

This invention relates to a window having a chamber forming a part of a closed system into which a colored liquid can be moved for coloring the window and from which the liquid can be removed to render the window transparent.

An object of the invention is to provide a window chamber which may be selectively connected to liquids of different colors for causing the window to assume a desired color.

A further object of the invention is to provide a color changing window including means for automatically controlling the amount of a colored liquid which is drawn into the window chamber, for automatically retaining said amount of liquid in the chamber, and for selectively varying the amount of liquid which can be moved into the window chamber.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following description of the drawings, illustrating a presently preferred embodiment thereof, and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view, partly in section, of the color changing window;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged sectional view, taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 22 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional View, partly in elevation, of a part of the closed system of the color changing window;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged horizontal view, taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 44 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 55 of FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 6 is a diagrammatic view of an electric circuit of the invention. 7

Referring more specifically to the drawings, the color changing window in its entirety is designated generally Sand includes a window 9 composed of two corresponding panes 10 and 11 of a transparent material, such as glass. A gasket 12 forms a seal between the marginal edges of the panes 10 and 11, except at the top center thereof where said panes are joined and sealed together to form an upwardly projecting nipple 13, and at the bottom center where the panes are similarly joined and sealed together to form a depending nipple 14. The nipples 13 and 14 are externally threaded, as seen at 15..

An upper end 16 of a conduit 17 is connected by a coupling 18 to the nipple 14, as best seen in FIGURE 5. The other end 19 of the conduit 17 is connected to a fitting 20 of a conventional three-way selector valve 21 which is manually operated by a lever 22. Containers 23, 24 and 25 are connected by conduits 26, 27 and 28, respectively, to the valve 21. Said containers hold different colored liquids, for example, the container 23 may contain a red liquid 29, and the container 24 a green liquid 30, and the container 25 a blue liquid 31.

One end of a conduit 32 is connected by a coupling 33 to the nipple 13, preferably in the same manner that the coupling 18 connects the conduit 17 to the nipple 14. The other end of the conduit 32 is connected to and communicates with the upper section 34 of a spherical shell or hollow receptacle 35 which includes a bottom section 36. Sections 34 and 36 have continuous marginal flanges 37 which are secured together by fastenings 38, with the marginal portion of a diaphragm 39 clamped between said flanges 37, as best seen in FIGURE 3. Diaphragm 39 is preferably formed of rubber and is normally disposed taut in the plane of its marginal portion.

A check valve 40 is interposed in the conduit 32, and opens toward the sphere 35. A pump 41, such as a rotary sliding vane pump, is interposed in the conduit 32 be tween the check valve 40 and the sphere 35 and is driven by an electric motor 42. The conduit 32 is provided with a bypass or branch conduit 43, one end of which connects therewith between the pump 41 and sphere 35, and the other end of which connects with said conduit between the coupling 33 and check valve 40. A manual shut-off valve 44 is interposed in the bypass 43, near said last mentioned end.

An electric switch housing 45 has an upstanding boss 46 which opens into said housing and which is connected to members 47 which depend from the shell section 36 for mounting the switch housing 45 therebeneath. The switch housing 45 is formed of electrical insulating material and has a contact post 48 at one end thereof to which is pivotally connected a switch blade 49 which is swingably mounted in the housing 45. A compression spring 50, contained in the housing 45, urges a free end of the switch blade 49 upwardly and into electrical contact with a post 51 which is mounted in and extends through the other end of the housing 45.

A push rod, designated generally 52, includes a stem 53 which is slidably mounted in an opening 54 of the bottom shell section 36 and which has a head 55 at its upper end to be engaged by the center of the diaphragm 39. The lower end of the stem 53 is threadedly mounted in the threaded bore of a sleeve 56 constituting the lower part of the push rod 52. The sleeve 52 is slidably mounted in the boss 46 and has its lower end bearing on the switch blade 49.

As best seen in FIGURE 6, the electric motor 42, the switch 49, 51 and a manually actuated switch 57 are all interposed in an electric circuit 58. From the fore going, it will be apparent that a closed system is provided between the valve 21 or one of the containers 23, 24 or 25 which is connected to the conduit 17 by said valve 21, and the chamber 59 of the shell 35, formed by the upper shell section 34 and the diaphragm 39, which closed system includes the chamber 60 between the panes 10 and 11. Assuming that the portion of said closed system between the selector valve 21 and the chamber 59 is filled with air, the chamber 60 may be filled with liquid from one of the containers, for example, the red liquid 29 from the container 23, by closing the valve 44 and turning the lever 22 so that the valve 21 will connect with the conduit 26 and'the conduit 17, and then closing the manual switch 57 to energize the pump motor 42. The

pump 41 will then draw air from the conduit 17 and chamber 60 through the conduit 32 past the check valve 40 for pressurizing the bypass conduit 43 up to the valve 44 and the chamber 59. The chamber 59 constitutes an accumulator which, as the air pressure builds up therein, the diaphragm 39 is distended downwardly. By the time that sufficient liquid 29 has been drawn from the container 23 to fill the chamber 60, the diaphragm 39 will have engaged the head 55 of the push rod 52 so as to force said push rod downward sufiiciently to move the switch blade 49 out of engagement with the contact 51 for opening the motor circuit 58. Thus, operation of the pump 41 is interrupted automatically as soon as suflicient suction has been created in the system to fill the chamber 60 with liquid 29, to prevent drawing the liquid 29 into the conduit 32 and to cause only a minimum deflection of the window panes 10 and 11 toward each other. The push rod 52 can be elongated by turning the stem 53 relative to the sleeve 56 in one direction to elfect a quicker opening of the switch 49, 51 when it is desired to only partially fill the chamber 60 with the liquid 29. It will also be apparent that either the liquid 30 or the liquid 31 may be drawn through the selector valve 21 instead of the liquid 29 by manual adjustment of the selector switch lever 22. The level of the colored liquid in the chamber 60 is maintained automatically since should any leakage occur past either the valve 40 or the valve 44 toward the chamber 60, the loss of pressure would occur in the chamber 59 for allowing the switch 49, 51 to resume a closed position to again operate the pump 41 until .the liquid returns to the proper level in the chamber 60.

By opening the switch 57 and the valve 44, the air will be forced, by the resiliency of the diaphragm 39, from the chamber 59 through the bypass 43 and that part of the conduit 32 located between the check valve 40 and coupling 33, back into the chamber 60 and conduit 17. Additionally, when the chamber 60 is thus vented, the liquid will flow by gravity therefrom through the conduit 17 and selector valve 21 into the container 23.

The selector valve 21 may be moved to a closed position so that the pump 41 may be operated for pulling a slight suction in the window compartment 60 for more effectively insulating the window 10, 11 against heat and cold. A neutral gas, such as argon, may be substituted for air in the system to provide a good heat and cold insulator for the window and reduce the possibility of evaporation of the colored liquid which could cause haziness in the window.

Various modifications and changes are contemplated and may be resorted to, without departing from the function or scope of the invention, as hereinafter defined by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention;

1. A color changing window comprising a closed conduit system, a receptacle containing a colored liquid connected to one end of said system, an expansible chamber connected to the other end of the system, a window having a chamber interposed in the system between said ends, 'a bypass conduit interposed in said system between the expansible chamber and the window chamber, a check valve interposed in the system between the ends of the bypass, a pump interposed in said system between the ends of the bypass and between said check valve and said expansible chamber, and a manually actuated shut-off valve interposed in said bypass, said check valve opening toward the pump whereby when said manual shut-off valve is closed and the pump is operated a suction is created in the system between the liquid containing receptacle and said pump for drawing liquid from the receptacle into the window chamber and for pressurizing and expanding said expansible chamber, said manual shut-off valve functioning when opened to release the pressure from said expansible chamber through the bypass conduit around the check valve and pump for returning the colored liquid to said receptacle.

2. A color changing window as in claim 1, an electric motor for operating said pump, an electric circuit for the motor, a normally closed electric switch interposed in the motor circuit, and means engaged by a distended part of the expansible chamber for automatically opening said switch.

3. A color changing window as in claim 2, said means being adjustable to vary the amount of pressure in the expansible chamber required to actuate said means for opening the switch.

4. A color changing window as in claim 1, a manually actuated multi-position selector valve interposed in the system between said colored liquid containing receptacle and said window chamber, additional receptacles containing liquids of different colors connected to said selector valve, and said selector valve having a manually actuated selector element for connecting any one of said colored liquid containing receptacles to the system or for shutting off all of the receptacles from the system.

No references cited.

DAVID H. RUBIN, Primary Examiner.

T. H. KUSMER, Assistant Examiner.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3,368,862 February 13, 1968 Hollie Thomas Dean or appears in the above numbered pat- It is hereb certified that err ent should read as ent requiring correction and that the said Letters Pat corrected below.

In the heading to the printed specification, lines 4 to 6, for "Hollie Thomas Dean, Williamsport, Md. assignor to Swift G Company, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois" read Hollie Thomas Dean, 107 N. Artizan St. Williamsport, Md. 21795 Signed and sealed this 3rd day of December 1968.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD J. BRENNER Edward M. Fletcher, Jr.

Commissioner of Patents Attesting Officer 

